The 2018 Jets have some promising young pieces and intriguing veteran newcomers, but will all these additions be enough to break a seven-year playoff drought? I'll be revealing my Top 20 players every weekday for the next four weeks.

The list is made up of the 20 players that I believe will make the most impact for Gang Green this season. Past accomplishments don’t guarantee you anything. This is about who will have the best 2018 campaign. We’re not going chalk here. This countdown is filled with surprises.

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Josh McCown will be an invaluable resource for the Jets' young talent. (Bill Kostroun / AP)

No. 16: Josh McCown

Position: Quarterback

Age at the start of the regular season: 39

2018 Salary Cap Charge: $10 million (signed a one-year, $10 million contract in the offseason)

2017 Season in Review:

It didn’t take long for McCown to become the leader for the eighth team of his 15-year career. Players and coaches gravitated toward the veteran, who backed up his locker-room leadership with the best season of his well-traveled career. McCown finished with career highs in starts, passing yards, touchdowns, completion percentage and passer rating to help Gang Green exceed its woeful external expectations. He was money on deep balls all season with a 104.9 passer rating on passes that traveled at least 20 yards in the air (eighth best in the league), according to Pro Football Focus.

He led the NFL in third-down completion percentage (69.4) despite some shaky protection. McCown was under pressure on 38.5 percent of his drop-backs. Only four other signal callers were under duress more often than McCown before he suffered a broken hand in a shutout loss in Denver in Week 14.

McCown was supposed to be the bridge to Christian Hackenberg or Bryce Petty, but the young quarterbacks never showed the brain trust that they were the answer.

Josh McCown. (Julio Cortez / AP)

2018 Outlook:

The Jets quickly re-signed McCown to a one-year deal after getting spurned by top free agent Kirk Cousins. It made perfect sense given all McCown brings to the table: leadership, toughness, knowledge and quality play. The Jets effectively ponied up $10 million ($4 million more than last year, by the way) to have McCown ease the transition to their future at the most important position. Gang Green didn’t know exactly which player would get the baton from McCown at the time, but it turned out to be Sam Darnold.

Can the Jets count on an aging quarterback to have back-to-back eye-opening seasons? It didn’t work out with Ryan Fitzpatrick. McCown’s history of injuries shouldn’t be marginalized, either. McCown will be atop the depth chart when training camp begins, which doesn’t mean much. If Darnold proves enough to the coaches in camp and the preseason, the rookie will be under center in Week 1. If not, McCown, who turned 39 earlier this month, will be the caretaker at the position until further notice. Either way, McCown will make a significant impact. His willingness to help Darnold at this important early stage of the rookie’s development will be pivotal.

"The best thing I can do is look back in five years and Sam Darnold is in the Pro Bowl," McCown told the Daily News this offseason. "That would be the most satisfying thing. We'll see. It'll be fun."

Darnold will have an invaluable resource at his disposal.

"Obviously, he's a great guy," Darnold said. "I am just going to try and learn as much as I can from him. He's seen a lot of football, been in a lot of locker rooms, which helps him out in terms of understanding what you need to do and what not to do. ... So, just learn from him, (and) gain all the knowledge that I can from him."

McCown likely won’t replicate his stats from a year ago, but he might actually make a bigger difference in 2018.

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Next on the countdown on Monday: A player with a world of talent taking on a new responsibility.